Ice Cream Shop Mishaps by MoonBeamMistress

Bee Stings and Bubble Gum

  Saturday morning came faster than Kagome could have imagined and, when she found herself digging through her closet for the umpteenth time, looking for just the right outfit to wear to the park, she realized how ridiculious she was being. The guy probably wouldn't even notice what she was wearing, let alone care.

  "Momma, are you ready to go yet?"

  Looking over her shoulder at her adopted son standing eagerly in the doorway to her room, she sighed and pulled herself from the closet.

  "I'm sorry, Shippo, I'm taking too long getting ready, huh?"

  Weaving through piles of clothes scattered along the floor, the young kitsune leaped up onto his mother's shoulder and peered into the nearly empty closet.

  "Why can't you find anything to wear, momma! You got lots of clothes."

  Explaining to the young boy why she was having a 'fashion emergency' was not exactly something she wanted to try and do, so after a few moments of  contemplation she decided to tell him a partial truth. "I just want to look nice today, sweetie."

  A mischevious grin settled on the young kitsune's face as he hopped back to the floor and crossed his arms. "You like Rin's dad don't you?"

  Feigning innocence, she snorted and stuck her head back in the closet to hide the reddening of her cheeks. "Yeah, ok, maybe I just want to look nice today. It's a bright, sunny day and I want to be bright and sunny, too!"

  "Uh huh, well if that's the case then i'll pick out your clothes." Turning away from his mother, he dove into the nearest pile of clothes and disappeared.

  Smart little booger, wasn’t he? Heaving a heavy sigh, Kagome pulled herself back out of the closet and slid the doors shut, resigning herself to wearing whatever her son pulled out of the mass of clothes littering her bedroom floor. She knew she really shouldn't be putting much thought into what she wore, but he always came into the shop wearing nice suits and the only thing he'd ever seen her in was that scandalous work uniform her boss made her wear. It was a travesty, really, and it was definitely something she had wanted to remedy today, but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out when she'd managed to obtain a closet full of the ugliest clothes known to man.

  "Shippou, you alright in there?"

  "Yeah, hold on." Re-emerging from the heap of assorted garments, he began yanking on something that was still buried half-way in.

  "Here let me help." Leaning down, she grabbed the edge of the garment he'd brought back from the depths and yanked, sending the top of the pile backwards and making an even bigger mess. For the love of..... that sneaky little fox knew exactly what was going on. Her eyes trailed over the white, knee-length dress with red and pink orchids printed on it, wondering how she'd missed it when she'd been tearing clothes out of her closet.

  "You want me to wear this?"

  The young kitsune nodded vigorously. "Yup, you look really pretty in that dress and it's bright and sunny, just like you wanted."

  Heaving an exaggerated sigh, she walked past him to head to the bathroom and get dressed, giving his hair a quick ruffle on her way through.

  "You goofy little fox, I love you."

  "Mo~om."

  "Ok, ok i'm going. I'll be ready in a sec."

  Fifteen minutes later they were out the door and on their way to the nearby park, Shippou chatting happily on her shoulder as she thought of the demon she was going to see shortly. Was this really happening? Was she really going to see the demon male she'd been mooning over for the past few months, so that her son and his daughter could have a playdate? Yes, yes she was. With a spring in her step, she practically skipped through the gates that lead to the large playground they would be spending their day at.

  "Go play, sweetie. I'm going to wait right over here on this bench for Rin and her father to get here, ok?"

  Without so much as a backward glance, the little kit shot off of her shoulder like a bullet and headed straight for the wooden structure that dominated the better part of the playground.

  Checking her watch as she sat down, she dug around in her purse for her latest smut novel, and settled in to read for the last half hour before Sesshomaru and Rin made their apperance at noon.

  Claire gave a breathless sigh as Damien nibbled at her neck with his sharp fangs, his name slipping from between her swollen lips as he slipped her dress from her shoulders and exposed her unbound chest to his hungry gaze.....

  "Alright! Go Damien, hurry up and ravish her already," Kagome mumbled quietly to herself. "You've been chewing on her for the last two pages, come on and give her some of that good old- fashioned vampire lovin'. I know you want to......"

  "Kagome!"

  Startled out of her mildly steamy daydream by the sound of someone calling her name, she let the book slip from her lap and clatter against the pavement. Looking around for the suspect who had ruined her moment of reading about someone who was actually getting some action, she was greeted by none other than the sight of Rin’s familiar gap-toothed grin. The young girl came racing at her like she was the first person she'd laid eyes on in years, stopping a foot or two away as she searched for something.

  "Where is he? Rin is very excited to meet Kagome's son!"

  Bending down to retrieve her book from the ground, she laid it on the bench next to her purse and called for Shippou. The little kit jumped off of the playground like an orange bouncy ball and came to a stop next to Rin, his emerald eyes glittering as he looked up at her curiously. The height difference between the two made Kagome giggle as they eyed each other in facination, Shippou's tiny hand's coming to rest on his hips while standing on tiptoe to get a closer look at the smaller girl's face. It was an adorable sight to watch the two interact, Rin circling the little kitsune, taking in his small form with a look of complete concentration as she tested how close she could get to him before he shifted away.

 "Shippou, this is Rin. Why don't you go take her over onto the playground and show her all of the cool stuff? In a little bit, i'll come push you guys on the swing."

  Nodding happily, he grabbed the young girl by the hand and began dragging her towards the wooden structure he'd been running around in earlier, a shy smile breaking out on Rin's face as she tried to keep up with the kitsune's speed.

  "Afternoon, Sesshomaru-sama, did you have any trouble finding your way here?"

  "No." He stated as he settled down on the bench next to her, his hair shifting with the light breeze to brush up against her bare arm.

  'Mmm, very silky,' she thought as she kept her eyes trained on the young ones barreling around the playground equipment. 'Wonder if he'd let me play with it.'

  Shifting a side-long glance at the silent youkai, she decided she'd probably lose a hand if she tried to stick her unworthy human hands anywhere near his shiny, silver locks. Oh, but she wanted to, really bad; even at the cost of a hand, it would probably be completely worth it. As if to taunt her further, he raised an elegant hand to lift the heavy curtain of silver silk and drape it over the back of the bench, the ends shifting with the gentle breeze once more to caress her lower back through the slats in the bench.

  Stupid youkai and their perfect, pretty hair. Damn them all to hell and back!

  "You have an interesting taste in literature, girl."

  Brought out of her mental beratement of the youkai race and their perfect features, she gave the demon a curious look before realizing she'd left her book sitting on the bench between them. Naughty cover exposed to any and all that wanted a peek, she felt a flush creep onto her cheeks as she grabbed it and shoved it back into her purse, hoping maybe if she got it out of sight, it would be like he never saw it. She should have known better.

  "Eh he he, well ya know, sometimes I just like to read something that doesn't take any effort on my part, something that helps me relax."

  "Reading of others’ sexual encounters helps you to relax?"

  Well she walked right into that one, didn't she? Cursing herself mentally, she scrambled for something to say to try and steer the conversation in another direction, but was pleasantly suprised when he continued to speak.

  "You are not...obligated to anyone?"

  Obligated? That was an odd way to put it and a completely out of the blue question.

  "Is there anyone special in my life, you mean?"

  "Hn."

  Holding up her fingers, she wiggled them to show that she wasn't wearing a ring and smiled. "Nope, no special man in my life other than my son. My last boyfriend and I split up a little over a year ago." She folded her hands back into her lap and looked down at them. "It was a messy break-up; after I told him I thought we needed a break, he took most of my stuff and drained my bank account while I was at school." Lacing her fingers together, she looked out across the playground at the two young ones playing in the sandbox. "I haven't seen him since."

  They fell into silence then, Kagome cursing herself for talking so openly with him and Sesshomaru contemplating what she'd revealed about herself.

  "What about you?" She asked after a few moments, her gaze shifting back to his passive face. "Any special lady in your life?"

  Mimicing her earlier action, he raised his hands and wiggled his fingers slightly, showing her the lack of a ring. "I am currently in the process of a divorce."

  Divorce? Kagome felt a wave of guilt override her momentary elation of seeing his fingers devoid of a wedding band, and directed her focus back to the children playing a short distance away.

  "Oh, i'm sorry."

  "Do not be. She is not the same woman I married and I am happy to be rid of her."

  Well that was pretty cold and uncaring, Kagome thought as she attempted to come up with a topic that was less personal.

  "So...."

  The sound of a child crying out in pain caught her attention almost immediately, her eyes going to the two children now flailing around in the sandbox as she lept from her seat and jogged toward them.

  "Momma, momma, Rin got stung by a bee!"

  Before she could even reach for the injured girl, Sesshomaru was there, his hands gripping her little arm gently as he examined the small swelling.

  "Is she allergic?" Kagome questioned as she kneeled next to him and looked at the crying girl's arm.

  "I am not sure." He confessed as he let Kagome lean closer to look at the rapidly swelling area.

  "Well, let's not risk it then. My apartment is about a block away. Let’s head there and i'll give her some benadryl and make up a paste to help with the sting. come on, Shippou."

  Lifting the sobbing girl into her arms, she waited for Shippou to jump up and perch on her shoulder before she began heading for her apartment.

  "Don't worry, Rin, i'll fix you right up the second we get to my house ok?"

  "Ok," she said with a small sob.

  By the time they reached her apartment and she'd sat Rin down on the edge of the kitchen table, the swelling on her arm had doubled.

  "I'd say that's a yes on being allergic to bee stings." Reaching up into the cuboard, she grabbed the benadryl and measured out the right dosage. "Here, honey, are you having any trouble breathing?"

  She shook her head in the negative as she took the medicine, her watery eyes focused on her father who stood in the doorway, confused and not really sure how he could help.

  "Don't worry, Sesshomaru, she'll be fine. My mom used to make this paste out of vinegar, baking soda and meat tenderizer when I was a kid that takes the sting right out, so after I get that made and on there, she'll be back to normal in about twenty minutes."

  "Hn."

  A half- hour later, Rin was dozing contentedly on the couch, her arm back to a normal size while Shippou sat quietly nearby keeping an eye on her while he ate lunch and pretended to watch tv. Kagome watched Sesshomaru lean casually in the kitchen doorway, his attention on his daughter snoozing obliviously a few feet away. He really had been kind of cute during the whole situation, hovering helplessly near the injured girl, wanting to help, but not knowing what exactly to do. She watched him shift his weight to get more comfortable against the doorframe and noticed something tangled in the swaying ends of his silver locks.

  "Um, Sesshomaru?"

  Wandering closer as he shifted his gaze to her, she had to stifle a small chuckle when she realized what it was.

  "Uh, there's umm, there's bubble gum in your hair."

  When he continued to look at her passively, she stepped forward tentatively and lifted the ends of his hair up for him to look at, his expression shifting from one of indifference to a look that clearly asked 'can this day get any worse'.

  "Don't worry," she said with a small chuckle as she walked over to the pantry. "Have a seat and i'll get the peanut butter. We'll have that out in a jiffy."

  Sesshomaru didn't look convinced.